CAIRO: A bomb blast outside the Iranian ambassador’s house in Libya’s capital Sunday which caused minor damage to the empty building was claimed by militants affiliated with ISIS.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham condemned the “terrorist” attack, which she said claimed no lives. She called on political rivals in Libya to form a national unity government to end the country’s escalating chaos.

Twitter accounts used by ISIS supporters said the attack was carried out by the group’s branch in Tripoli and posted pictures from the site of the explosion. 

There are growing concerns that ISIS has spread beyond the battlefields of Iraq and Syria and established a foothold in Libya, just across the sea from Europe. There was no official statement from the group claiming responsibility for the attack.

The group claimed responsibility for suicide bombings Friday in eastern Libya that killed at least 40 people in what the group said was retaliation for Egyptian airstrikes against the extremists’ aggressive new branch in North Africa.

Sunday’s attack only caused minor damage to the home of the Iranian ambassador, who is out of the country, according to a Libyan security official in Tripoli, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief reporters.

The Sunni extremist group considers Shiite Muslims, who make up the majority of Iran’s population, as apostates. Tehran is a strong backer of both the Syrian and Iraqi governments, which are at war with ISIS.

The blast was caused by an improvised explosive device placed among garbage bags outside the ambassador’s house. The official said there were no casualties from the blast, which rocked the capital.

Late Saturday, rockets were fired at an airfield in the east of the country, which is being used by an anti-Islamist general, but they fell short, the facility’s manager said.

Unknown assailants fired four rockets at the international airport just outside Labraq, from which Gen. Khalifa Haftar’s forces launch raids against Islamist positions in the east.

The airport, which has civilian and military terminals, has been targeted repeatedly in recent months.

Labraq is some 65 kilometers west of the Islamist stronghold of Derna, which was hit Monday by Egyptian and Libyan warplanes.

Labraq is one of the few airports still operating in the North African country, after both the Tripoli and Benghazi facilities were put out of action in clashes.

Libya, which has been roiled by turmoil since the NATO-backed ouster of dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, is awash with weapons and rival militias battling to control its cities and oil wealth.

It has two rival governments and parliaments, one recognized by the international community and the other with ties to Islamists.

With the capital in the hands of Islamist militias, the recognized government has taken refuge in Al-Baida, just a few kilometers west of Labraq.